Forgetting

Chapter 19-Is this Heaven, or is this Hell?

It was late afternoon by the time I woke up. A heavy arm was draped across my waist, and somewhere in the middle of the night I'd started using him as a body pillow. I lay there for a while in comfortable silence, enjoying the warmth radiating off him.

He looked so much younger while sleeping, his hard features relaxed and open. There was a vulnerability in his expression which disappeared the moment he woke up.

I sighed. I wished I could stay here forever, wrapped in the safety of his arms, but my life had never been that simple. Somehow, I had a feeling it never would be either.

" Are you staring at me, Naomi?" He mumbled, flipping over and nuzzling into my neck.

" Maybe," I replied, grinning," We should probably get out of bed."

Just like that, his eyes shot open and he peeled the blankets off. Leaping to his feet, he picked up his shirt from the floor and tugged it on, smiling briefly when I pouted.

" Krishna told me there was a Portal here which can get us back to the Enchanted Forest," He said, his Protector mask slipping back on. He was all business now.

" How?" I asked, frowning. I'd heard of Portals before; they were common items used to transport anyone to another pre-determined location. The issue with using these were that the user had to know the object in their hand was a Portal.

" The curse isn't perfect. It created two portals. The Queen has been using one, which is how she keeps visiting this world when necessary." His expression darkened at the mention of her name, and I realized with a pang he had been forced to live with her this whole time.

" What- what did she do to you when you two were together?" I asked hesitantly, and immediately regretted it.

He froze for a moment, a tirade of emotions playing across his face. I looked down at my hands, feeling read-hot jealousy spike through me. Had he been forced to touch her, the way he touched me?

When I looked back up he was the picture of calmness, his expression wiped blank.

" That isn't important," He replied evenly," Not now."

" So you'd be okay with killing her if necessary?"

He picked up his dagger and slid it into his pocket," I would do anything to protect you, Naomi."

Electricity crackled through the air as we stared at each other, my gaze falling to his lips. I swung my legs off the bed and got up, stretching my back. I really needed to focus on the task at hand, not get carried away by how much his presence affected me.

" So what's the plan?" I asked.

" We have to find both the Portals and escape with them, leaving her stuck here with no way out."

" She tried to kill us!" I protested," Why are we sparing her life?"

He lowered his gaze to meet mine," If we kill her, how are we any different from her?"

That shut me up. Blushing, I suddenly realized I had another major problem. My ripped dress lay on the floor, and there was no way I was wearing high-heeled boots to battle.

" Evan," I said, feeling my cheeks turn red," I don't have any clothes to wear."

That got a huge laugh from him, but he didn't seem particularly regretful about tearing my dress apart. He tugged his shirt off and threw it to me; pulling it on gratefully, I was relieved to find it hit my knees. As for the shoes, well, maybe I'd just bring barefoot back in fashion.

" What are you going to do about the shirt?" I asked.

Shrugging, he opted to go for the bare-chested look. He pulled on a leather jacket but left it unzipped. Not that I was complaining. A giggle rose up in my throat as I realized how ridiculous our clothing attire might look to someone else.